The Role of Second Home Tourism in the Physical and Environmental Changes of Lahijan during the Last Two Decades (A Case Study of Shirjoopasht Village and Lahijan)

One of the basic strategies in the field of rural development that has been considered in recent years and has had positive results in many countries is the development and expansion of tourism in rural areas. However, this strategy in Iran and especially in the study area has been associated with a phenomenon called second homes, the results of this expansion has had many negative consequences in physical, economic, environmental, cultural and social dimensions. Rural areas of Lil rural district of the central part of Lahijan during the last two decades with the prosperity of the tourism industry have been associated with the phenomenon of the expansion of second homes. In this research, using descriptive-analytical methods and statistical tests, the effects of the expansion of second homes on physical and environmental changes in rural areas of Lil district have been investigated. The results showed that the expansion of the second homes had the greatest impact on the physical part of the villages. Negative effects of the physical part include: changes in the rural landscape and urbanization of the settlement, disruption of the traditional structure and homogeneity of construction, loss of physical beauty of the village, changes in residential and commercial units. Also land use change, leveling of mountains, increasing waste production and changes in workshop units and local employees are the most important negative effects in the environmental sector.